See You Later 2014!

December has come and gone.  It came in quickly, and in a blink of an eye, it was gone.  This year the Christmas Season seemed compact and the weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year's were few, and with the business that comes with the season, blogging was forgotten.  So let's rewind all the way back to the beginning of December 2014.  In order to remember I had to scan through my phone pictures and rack by brain!

December 3rd brought Aunt CC and Maizey to our house to aid in putting the girls on the bus and watching Zane as I took Max to UofM Mott's Children's Hospital to see a pediatric cardiologist.  The appointment yielded great news about Max's ticker, which is fine.  He does have three separate murmurs that are very loud, but completely harmless.  He is a healthy and active young man!  Knowing how active he is, my doubts were few about something actually being wrong, but the appointment gave me peace of mind and you can never go wrong with an expert in the field!

December 6th we drove out to our favorite Christmas Tree Farm and picked out our first tree for the new house!  The sun was deceiving, and we figured it would be an easy trip.  The wind whipped and the search was excruciatingly long!  The kids started to break down and used the trees as wind blockers and hunkered down as we trudged on to find the perfect tree.  Finally, we found one that wasn't perfect, but would do the job!  The children were relieved!

The tree was, of course, larger than anticipated once placed inside, but the new house was able to accommodate the tree and it was a beautiful addition! The children joyous decorated and gushed over old ornaments they created and ones we've accumulated over the years. Their joy was infectious and we all begin to feel the spirit of the season!

The next weekend we traveled to Sturgis for a day to visit with Grandpa Roehrig, and Aunt Liz and Uncle Larry.  The trip was short, but sweet, filled with many old toys being pulled out and snuggles up with Grandpa R to read books.  My favorite part was the infamous spaghetti that we had for dinner!  Grandpa Roehrig makes the BEST spaghetti and I literally have outright cravings for the chucky deliciousness! 

Again, being on the PTO board I was in charge of executing the Santa Supper that took place on December 11th.  The event is well loved by the school families and despite all the hard work that goes into it, and the fact I don't even get to see or enjoy my family, it's something I do enjoy doing.  This year all the children willingly talked with Santa and loved the event. Although Tom was in charge of getting them ready to go and the girl's hair, specifically Violette's, is a mess and I would've changed outfits to coordinate a little better, it's still a really cute picture that I will cherish for many years to come!  

The next December event was our 10th wedding anniversary that occurred on December 18th.  That was a Thursday, meaning Zane went to Thursday School and Tom and I were able to have a few hours to ourselves to celebrate!  We even had a romantic breakfast at Tim Horton's haha!  We not have went on a getaway, or dressed up for a special dinner out, but those few hours to ourselves were nice and I even scored a new diamond ring!  Can't complain about that!  

Upon pick up time for Zane, we were able to see him sit on Santa's lap and get a little present.  He was the first one to go, and had no fear and jumped right up there!  

December 20th marked the Annual Babcock Christmas Party in St. Clair.  Weather was clear and the drive smooth.  When my Mom's side of the family gets together it's always a good time filled with much noise and many laughs.  The children were gifted with many presents and loved talking with all the people around.  With right around 50 people it was a wonderful chaos!  My Grandfather was in a great way and seeing him sit back, taking in the family he created was a sight to be seen!  As I write this he is not doing so well, and his days are numbered here on Earth as he awaits to meet his beautiful bride in heaven!  We were all so blessed to have this special time with him during the family Christmas and it will always be cherished in my heart! 

I wrote the above paragraph before he died on January 7th, 2015.  I haven't changed it and just now (January 26th) looked at my saved drafts to start catching up on my blog.  Tears hit my eyes while skimming the words.  He will be so missed, and after this post is finished I will write about his funeral.  Until then I will finish this long update.

My darling, sweet, sentimental, kind, studious, rule following little old lady, Noelle Rose, turned 9 years old on the 21st!  It was truly hard to grasp the fact that my first born, the child that turned me into a mother, was nine years old! She kindly only asked for books and to spend the day in bed, being served her meals.  She didn't spend the whole day in bed, but was given a lot of books for her birthday and enjoyed reading a ton and stayed in her pajamas the entire day.  

Christmas was up next!  Unfortunately all six of us decided that it was the perfect time to come down with body aches, fever, chills, coughs, chest congestion, you know, typical influenza symptoms.  It was a rough go of it, but with much medication we all made it though.  My parents, brother, his girlfriend Taylor, my sister's family all come down Christmas Eve to celebrate with us.  I'm not sure how, but pictures were not taken.  My guess is that we all were concentrating on being in the moment.  With the help of my Mom, we had a huge dinner or Turkey and ham and all the trimmings to enjoy in the afternoon.  The children were of course spoiled by Santa, and despite their sickness, and battling fevers, they had a wonderful time.  Many cuddles on the couch, were taken but even more smiles and giggles were heard and enjoyed.  Christmas 2014 was a great one, even with the plague in the house!

We had the pleasure of hosting Uncle Alex and Taylor for a few extra days before they drove back to New York.  The weather was surprisingly warm and unseasonal so we headed out to the local hiking trails to get some much needed fresh air in our systems and try to sweat out the sickness.  

Maximilian Charles turned 7 on December 31st.  My little, mischievous guy is seven freakin' years old!  A lover of everything sports, a avoider of everything homework related, and a corrector of his siblings, he is a boy that keeps us on our toes, but loves wholeheartedly!  Of the four, he challenges me the most and forces me to learn new parenting methods and search for the best way for me to become a better parent.  As much as I struggle with him, I am eternally grateful for the chance to better myself as a Mom and learn new and different ways to be a parent.  

For his birthday I made him a cake and we celebrated by having a lazy day at home followed by a night out a neighbor's house to ring in the new year and even had a mini balloon drop!   

Ok that ends the Christmas Season and I can focus on January and February for me next most! 

Grandpa

I have a draft started of December events.  It has yet to be completed.  Today's post is more important to write and complete.  Today my Grandfather, Charles Henry Babcock, passed away.  Today he entered heaven to be with the love of his life, my Grandmother, who passed away on October 7th 2010.

Today's tears are filled with his memories.  I cry because I will miss him.  I cry for selfish reasons.  I know that he is in a truly better place, one filled will joy and void of pain and discomfort.

The Babcock Family celebrated our annual family Christmas this year on December 20th.  It was a beautiful party and Grandpa was present in all his glory.  We are so sincerely blessed to have had this last gathering with him.  As we drove to St. Clair, I mentally told myself that I needed to get a picture of him and all the great grandchildren.  It was a fleeting thought and one I did not get a chance to capitalize on.  I'm mad at myself for this.  My tears stream hot and steady of this lack of follow through.  The hussle and bussle of 50+ family members to catch up with and enjoy overshadowed my want to take the picture.  I look back and try to remember that I took very few pictures, as  I was in the moment of the party, and not glued to my phone/camera.  I talked with Grandpa, laughed with cousins, and looked on as Grandpa engaged with everyone, pride filling his entire body.  The picture did not happen, but so many wonderful memories from that night did.

This picture was taken by my someone and even though it isn't one with my children, it is a favorite of mine.  My brother completely engaged with Grandpa!  He had great relationships with all this grandchildren, always such sweet sentiments spoken and deep love felt.  His genuine smile speaks volumes.  In the background, Grandma's painting can be seen, as if she is looking on this beautiful scene.

Grandpa was the Patriarch of an incredible family.  Six amazing daughters in 7 1/2 years, 18 grandchildren, and six great grandchildren.  The numbers are large, but it's the closeness of the family that is amazing.  We are older now, but truth be told, no one had their smart phones out at Christmas, no one was plugged in, we were all present and loving each other.  That was our family in general, always present and always with something to talk about, and laugh over.

I could continue to write for hours, but my tears are fresh, and the loss is deep.  I will write more after we say our official goodbye's at his funeral.  For now I will pray for peace for my Mom and her sisters as they have to process this death of their Father.  I will remember that Heaven is grand and he is most certainly enjoying his time, finally reunited with his Bride.

Rest In Peace Grandpa.  May you look down upon us all and feel much admiration for your life and love from us all.

Private Parts and Rushing Around

We avoided that start of school sports rush, not wanting to commit to too much while they adjust to the schedule or getting up (not really the problem ever, unfortunately) and getting going in a prompt manner.  The adjustment period has lapsed and we have moved on to some after school activities that are now filling our evenings and making life a scheduling nightmare for one parent to handle.  It's tough with Tom working late into the evenings, and with his long commute, things are tricky to juggle and poor Zane gets stuck sitting around waiting.  Oh well, such is life with four children and we make it work!

Max joined the local rec center for some floor hockey fun.  His short six week season just ended, and he was very disappointed, so much so he cried!  I guess that means he had fun!

Violette decided she wanted to try gymnastics and is attending classes once a week.  She continuously says that she does not like gymnastics class, but can be seen practicing handstands and cartwheels every day.  My guess is she is uncomfortable with not being able to complete all the skills perfectly and she gets frustrated easily.

 That brings me to the "private parts" part in the title of this post.  We switched the children's doctors due to the fact our old one stopped giving immunizations.  The children were behind, and it was time to find a pediatrician instead of a family doctor that operated with better hours and walk-ins.  Although our new doc is a 40 min drive away, the kids are caught up on shots!  Poor Zane had a minor procedure done on his little solider that resulted in massive swelling and multiple visits to the doctor and then an immediate visit to the urologist.  Everything is back to normal now, but it was a rough couple of weeks filled with much coddling and many tears.

The new doctor also discovered the Max's previous heart murmur had gotten stronger in sound and she wanted him to see a pediatric cardiologist as soon as we can.  His appointment is bright and early Wednesday (12-3) morning at UofM Mott's Children's Hospital.  Most likely all will be fine, and it's just a precaution getting it checked out, one that will ease my mind!

Well, I guess Halloween occurred awhile ago and I never posted pictures!  It was cold and rainy, of course, and Noelle opted not to go trick-or-treating this year.  I had no objection, since I didn't want to go either!  Tom and the children joined our neighbor, Howard, and his two boys, while the Mom's stayed in and handed out hot totties to the adults while Noelle helped with their baby, and passed out candy.  Everyone had a really nice time, and a successful Halloween 2014

For Thanksgiving we drove to St. Clair and celebrated for the fifth year in a row, at my Aunt Judy's house.  Alex, my Mom and Dad, and sister were also there.  The turkey and stuffing were plentiful as was the time spent with family.  I am Thankful for another year, and overjoyed I got to spend it with great company. I put down the phone and took no pictures, opting to send the entire time submerged in now of the day.

But here are some random pictures taken over the month or so.